A short feedback after 6 months of reduction and social media detox
Like many other early adopters, I got more and more bored of social media, LinkedIn and all the bling-bling tools, that interrupt you every second during the last years and what did I?
Yes, I canceled Facebook 3 years ago, Instagram 2 years ago, WhatsApp and all these messengers 6 months ago, my smartphone 6 months ago(I just use it, when I am traveling I like the navi...), and I switched to a Punkt MP02 phone(yes you can only make phone calls with it and the Accu lasts 2-3 weeks :-) and now thinking about a Light Phone 2 :-).
So what have I learned?
I feel more relaxed because people just can reach me via phone call or email and meet me in person or by a video call.
I do not consume stupid social media content all the time, I read more books or real newspapers and I like it, but it took at least 4 months until I had no addictive feelings regarding social media and that I miss something.
Ok, I use LinkedIn for business, but I just check it on my computer or IPad and not every 15 Minutes as before with my smartphone. My followers increased by 7.000 followers within 2 years and that's ok for me, because I like more quality then fanboys who do not fit to my mindset or ideas, but it does not mean that I do not like critical or controversy people, I like people who have to say something, not stupid copy cats, who just post boring, old news all the time.
Believe me, you really get more quality time, when you walk around without a smartphone and you have more fun when you are social with real people, then only on social media, even if you eat and drink too much together, lol :-)
I also believe that LinkedIn and social media is on a downtrend because we are getting more and more bored by the stupid content. I am not sure if companies do work or spend 50% of their time in social media action, marketing, videos, posting boring, old-school content, they just discovered now, but which is not really new or innovative. This happens to us because there is no editor anymore and sorry 75% of the people are no editors with high-quality content, its just boring millennial mimimi postings, clips or pictures. Posting just to post every second and get the dopamine kick. Yes, you know what I mean I wrote about more than 1 time before.
Anyways, with this article I want you to make this experiment I did:
1st Kill it:
- Kill your smartphone! (or just use it wisely when you are traveling, but you don't need it to be in contact with the world.)
- Kill your social media accounts (Facebook, Google+, Instagram, etc pp.)!
- Check Linkedin (if you need to) for business 3-4 times per day, not more.
- Kill your messenger apps who annoy and disturb you every second with stupid content or emojis
2nd build it:
- Meet your friends in the real world
- Write letters and send it by post to your beloved
- Be social without social media
- And just work and show off with it, after you did something really good, not before
I know it might be a challenge the first months, and if it is a challenge, you can see, how addicted to it you were in the past, but in the end it makes you a new, creative, smarter and better human, as we were before the internet and smartphone age, or just before 2010 I would say. :-)
For more info check also this blog post from June 2019.
#punkt #phone
Greetings from Vienna
Thomas